Laminated plastic sheet material is widely used in the advertising field because it is sturdy but is easily cut and engraved for a variety of desirable effects. Usually, a two step process is necessary to cut and finish the laminated sheet. First, the laminate sheet is cut to the desirable size with a jig saw, table saw, shear or the like. Second, the edges are finished with a router employing a beveling bit.
Several devices have been produced to trim or cut the edge of a laminated sheet of plastic. Typical of the art are those devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,575 issued to K. N. White on Jun. 7, 1977; U.S. Pat. No. 4,304,276 issued to A. Termini on Dec. 8, 1981; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,786 issued to Freud et al. on Nov. 29, 1988. Each of these patents teaches a device which is used to edge or trim an edge of laminated plastic. None of these devices are intended to be used to simultaneously and precisely cut and edge or bevel a stock sheet of laminated plastic to a desirable size. A means for securely holding the work piece during the cutting or edging operation is not taught. Further, none of these devices provides a location for the resulting particles, dust and shavings to fall or to be removed such that the particles do not interfere with cutting or edging operation.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a cutting and beveling device which can simultaneously cut and bevel laminated plastic.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a cutting and beveling device which provides a work surface to which a selected work piece can be securely held.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a cutting and beveling device which defines a device for removing the shavings from the work piece during the cutting and beveling operation.